A proposal released this week by the Forest Service would give off-highway vehicles roads of their own in national forests while restricting them from other areas.
Off-highway vehicles accounted for more than 214 million visits to national forests and grasslands in 2002, but Forest Service officials say misuse of trails and travel routes poses increasing threats to the environment and wildlife habitats.
The vehicles “are a great way to experience the national forests, but because their popularity has increased in recent years, we need an approach that will sustain natural resource values through more effective management of motor vehicle use,” said Forest Service chief Dale Bosworth.
The goal is better management of forestland and preservation of water, soil, air and cultural elements, he said.
The draft policy also would establish classes of the motor vehicles, which range from minibikes to dune buggies, and would allow some vehicles access to trails only during specific times of the year.
Snowmobile use still would be determined on a discretionary basis under the proposal.
“We want to improve our management of outdoor recreation by having a system of routes and areas offering the best opportunities for [off-highway vehicle] use while still meeting our responsibility to sustain National Forest System lands and resources,” Mr. Bosworth said.
Bill Dart, executive director of the Blue Ribbon Coalition, said the policy sounds reasonable, but he is concerned about its implementation. The coalition is a group of recreationists concerned with the right of access to public lands.
“The concept is sound. The devil is in the details,” Mr. Dart said.
He is concerned that user-created trails, often the ones used most for recreation, will not be considered as officials draft maps of authorized and nonauthorized roads and trails or off-highway vehicles.
The Forest Service said the proposal would not require extensive funding because it is only an extension of a policy. Mr. Dart, however, said specific resources must be devoted to the task.
“We’d sure like to see the Forest Service back up this initiative with increased funding and raising it in a priority list to get the job done,” he said. “There’s a lot of competing interests; it’s going to be very difficult to get the job done.”
Public involvement in the designation of roads process is included as part of the draft policy, which is available on www.fs.fed.us.
Forest Service officials also could temporarily close routes believed to be harming wildlife habitat, soil, vegetation or other environmental elements.
For John Baughman, executive director of the International Association of Fish and Wildlife, the draft policy reflects what should be common sense — separate and distinct roads and trials for off-highway vehicles.
“We just think this is the best way to go,” he said. “This is a means of having people legally implement what ought to be common sense anyway. We’re not against access, but we want it to be reasonable.”
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